got my T torn down today, but need some advise on what kind of paint to use on the chassis and suspention parts. obviasly it dosent have to be perfect and flawless, just something durrable and prevent rust. Is thier any rattle can paint that is durrable to use? if so what kind of primer if any?
Check the EASTWOOD cataloge - they have several choices in rattle cans. i have seen many 'rattle can' restorations that last well and looked very good. I was going to be an AH and simply say 'black' but it is a serious question - therefore a serious answer.
I used oil base paint for farm equipment such as trailers etc. It worked pretty well but not show quality. Pretty durable.
I go to my local automotive paint store and ask for ready to spray enamel with hardner. They make me a quart in whatever color I want, all for about $30.00. Very durable and no need to add reducer. If they've never heard of this, PM me and I'll tell you what brand I get. Mark
If you want to get really serious about rust prevention and durability, you can go the POR-15 route, even brush paint it on to avoid most fumes. Otherwise, the tractor paint is a great protectant and relativley inexpensive. It's most likely what I will do on my 48 when the time comes. I have seen good results from either Rustoleum "hammered" finish or Hammerite spray paints on smaller chassis parts. Looks neat and feels like it cures harder than normal spray paints.
thanks i think i will look into the tractor paint, i dont want it too nice now because i will just strip it off latter when i have the money and resourses to do it right.
Good old fashioned enamel still works really well. I get the enamel w/hardener from TCP global, and it is kick-@ss for the money. Enamel with hardener is still tough to beat on a chassis for cost/durability. It shines really nice, too and resists chipping because it tends to stay kind of flexible.
Enamel is the way to go .Here is an alternative method i have not seen.Truck bed coating. Ive srayed stuff with this before sanded out and topcoated. All rattle can stuff.You can spray this without alot of texture, It's just an idea if you like that look
I love PPG epoxy primer DP90, which is a semi gloss black color. It is very durable except it is not UV resistant. If it is exposed to the sun, you get some semi flat urethane mixed up, or Eastwood has a chassis black paint.
Eastwood has a Chassis Black in shiny and satin finish. It is really durable and an epoxy base. It ain't cheap but the cans are big . It also will go over bare metal without primer, I would always primer first, but you can use it without. Check out there website.......Eastwoodco.com
If you have any rust put some rust converter on it first. It acts like a primer too. That Krylon Hammer finish is pretty good stuff. There different colors, it's semigloss and hides imperfections to some degree. I used it in the wheels of my OTspeed 3 and it seems to hold up pretty good.
search for the Rustoleum threads... lots of guys here use it on their chassis with really good results!!
I use tractor paint, rustoleum, semi gloss , I don't use the mineral spirits like they recommend, I use xylene or xylol (same stuff) it dries faster. Get it clean and spray it on. You don't need a fancy gun, just a $35 dollar gun from hardware store works. And don't forget to use your respirator not a dust mask.
Of coarse someone knows,this subject has posted many times.........so do a search next time....GEEEEEEZ
On my T-bucket I used Rustoleum black and it turned out great. You have to thin it with Acetone to spray it but that is what I did. Prime the frame first, then spray it and and let it dry good and your ready to go. Later when you get a rock chip of scratch (even though it's pretty hard) you can just touch it up with a brush right out of the can. Even it you had to weld on the frame after it is all together you can still touch it back up with a brush and the bristle marks smooth out after it sets. Nobody will even notice the touchup.
I have been using Rustoleum bought at Home Depot with Nason acrylic enamel hardener. As a matter of fact, I believe Rustoleum is acrylic enamel. It works great, dries hard and is very durable.
Well I think this thread has offered enough info to make it's presence worthy of the space. Stuff mentioned here that I couldn't find elsewhere..
ended up useing rustoleum black only did first light cout on underside but love the way it turned out so far. Thanks for all the advise, my favorite part is $8 for a quart and it looks like it will do all the suspention parts.
Don't use POR 15 anywhere it will hit sun without the UV top coat. I have been using a black epoxy that my paint guy sold me. Looks excellent and seems to be holding up well on a few projects I have used it on. The spray on bedliner in a can looks good as well and has an interesting texture. I get cans of it from Autozone for about $7 each and use it a lot on trunks and floors. Would work good on a chassis as well.
I used a grey rustoleum on my mazda frame, came out nice and smooth with just a roller and brush after maybe 3 coats.
I seen a lot of guys talk about using John Deere black and they said they had real good results with it. My .02
I used to use all of the fancy expensive stuff but have found that Rustoleum works better than anything else for general frame stuff. They have flat, semi, and gloss. The semi is about as close to traditional chassis paint you can get. In quarts it is about $10 and in squirt cans about $3. If you buy the quarts and want to spray, thin it out a bit with mineral spirits and your ready to go. When we did the Raven over, Arthur Bentas had coated everything with undercoating 50+ years ago. After many days days of chassic scraping, power wire brushing, etc., we slobbered on some Rustoleum semi-gloss and the chassis looks unbelievable. It's the best bang for the buck in my humble opinion.
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